


The Little Things

by Sounddrive



Category: The Arcana (Visual Novel)
Genre: Anxiety, F/M, Gen, Getting to Know Each Other, Mother's Day, Slice of Life
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-13
Updated: 2019-06-13
Packaged: 2020-05-02 12:23:02
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,763
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19198717
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sounddrive/pseuds/Sounddrive
Summary: Mother's Day slipped Lyra's mind and she needs to come up with something quick!General anxiety about going to spend some time with one's S.O.'s, and talking to said S.O.'s mom one on one, and fluff. So much fluff.





	The Little Things

**Author's Note:**

> A/N: In honor of Mother’s Day today in the states, I wanted to write a little something for one of Lyra’s would-be mother-in laws.
> 
> Timeline: Takes place not long after the epilogue of Asra’s Upright ending.
> 
> (Originally posted on tumblr on May 12th, 2019)

****“...Lyra?”

“Mhm!”

Asra looked on at her in concern, watching her bustle about the kitchenette. Her hair was a mess, uncombed, her shirt was on backwards, and her socks were severely mismatched.

“Ly, talk to me; you’re scaring Faust.”

As if on cue, Faust popped up from her coils over Asra’s shoulders.

_Friend stressing!_

Lyra finally paused in her maddening paces. She was about to reply, only to catch her reflection in one of the metal pots she was cooking with. She set down the bowl of cake batter she was mixing. In defeat, it seemed, she braced herself against the table, head bowed, and a quiet _uuugggggggggh_  eeked out of her.

Slowly, Asra approached. Once within arm’s reach, he placed a gentle hand on her shoulder. He leaned a little ahead of her, trying to catch her gaze.

“... I completely forgot today’s Mother’s Day,“ Lyra murmured.

Asra hummed in sympathy. He tucked some errant strands of hair behind her ear, a little laugh escaping him.

“Lyra... no one’s going to fault you for that,” Asra soothed.

He stepped back once she turned to face him. Lyra’s eyes were closed and she had the biggest frown on her face.

“...Asra, this is the first Mother’s Day your mom has been with you in... what, fifteen years, with you?“

“Something like that,” Asra nodded. Before she could go on another stretch of talking, Asra held up his hand.

“Spectacles, please.”

Dutifully, Lyra handed them to him while she went to wipe her face free of the cake batter that landed on her face.

Asra cleaned her glasses, pausing a moment when he realized something.

“Hey Ly?”

“...what?”

“Did I ever tell you your glasses and my dad’s glasses are almost the exact same?”

Hearing her laugh placed a smile on his face.

Good, that was good...

Once Lyra had cleaned herself up, hair combed and shirt on the right way, Asra placed her glasses back on her face.

“There you are,” Asra greeted, giving her a kiss on the nose.

Lyra flushed at the contact, stepping into his outstretched arms for a hug.

“Uggggggh...” she groaned, planting her face against his chest.

Asra’s chin settled on top of her head in response, waiting.

They stood together like that a while. Faust slithered on around their shoulders, becoming a wiggly noodle of a scarf.

Eventually...

“Asra, can you help me with the cake?” Lyra muttered from her spot.

“Of course I will!” Asra was about to give her a comforting smooch on her head, but Faust beat him to it, booping her nose against Lyra’s cheek.

“Hey!” he laughed.

_Too slow!_

* * *

They’re not _too_ late to dinner, luckily.

Upon arriving at Aisha and Salim’s home on the outskirts of Vesuvia, the pair of them are welcomed with open hugs and warm greetings.

“Is that a cake?” Salim asked, adjusting his glasses.

“Mhm!” Asra replied, smiling. “Lyra made it.”

“Asra helped,” Lyra added, shaking her head.

“All I did was put on the icing,” Asra retorted, “she did everything else.”

There was a playful glimmer in Aisha’s eyes at that.

“How much icing did you eat, Asra?”

“I only licked the spoon!”

Unseen by him, Lyra playfully made an exaggerated gesture while rolling her eyes. As Aisha and Salim chuckled at her motions, Lyra became less tense.

She removed her shoes at the door, leaving them on the welcome mat outside. Stepping in with Asra, Faust immediately zipped up, scanning her surroundings.

 _Parents!_  Faust exclaimed, seeing Chimes and Flamel off to the side, close to the fireplace.

The two other snakes poke their heads up from their tangle of coils. In greeting, they both flicked their tongues out.

Asra and Lyra go _aww_  in unison, the former gently uncoiling his familiar from his neck. Once he set Faust down, she darted off to be with her own parents.

“Oh wow, that smells good Mrs. Alnazar,” Lyra smiled, wandering over to the pot Aisha stirred as Salim and Asra set the table.

Aisha chuckled. “Lyra, you know you can just call me ‘Aisha’.”

Lyra flushed immediately, averting her gaze to the side. “...sorry...”

She moved aside when Aisha took the pot up from the stove. Then, Lyra quickly raced ahead of her to set down a pile of tea towels for the pot to be placed upon.

Salim placed down a basket of bread and Asra, extremely cautiously, Lyra noted, brought the tea pot over, setting down cups for everyone.

Asra and Lyra took up one side of the table, and his parents the other.

Their conversations were a wide array of topics that night: the aqueducts, some gossip from the palace and the magic shop, adorable things their familiars all did, and so on. By the time the meal was finished, the sun had long set and the moon was shining down from above.

Before Lyra could stand and offer to help clean up, Asra pressed down on her shoulder and had her sit back down.

“Dad and I got this,” her love reassured. He quickly placed a peck on her cheek. “Spend some time with my mom; she wants to know more about you.”

_Oh dear..._

Lyra managed a non-wobbly smile at him, nodding.

* * *

She followed Aisha outside into the backyard. Above, the sky was a velvet blue, dotted with multitudes of stars and the moon shining down upon them.

Lyra settled herself heavily onto a bench nearby, looking anywhere and everywhere Aisha wasn’t. The young magician fiddled with her fingers, swallowing on a lump that wasn’t going away.

“Lyra, are you all right?”

She snapped her head up, startled.

“I’m fine Mrs.-ah, I mean-” Lyra stuttered. She made a fist and promptly smacked her thigh with it, stilling for a moment.

She hissed a little from the throb that radiated from where she hit herself, but it stilled her.

“Yeah, I’m fine,” Lyra swallowed.

Looking up at Aisha, Lyra realized the fellow magician looked on at her with concern.

“...actually, I was panicking, for a while, before I got here...”

Lyra didn’t object when Aisha scooted closer to her. The latter held out a hand for her to hold. In turn, Lyra gently placed her hand into Aisha’s, exhaling.

“Why were you panicking?”

Lyra shrugged. “Uh, the fact this is the first Mother’s Day Asra has had with you in so long? The fact that this is _the_ first Mother’s Day I remember where I actually am celebrating it with a mother figure?”

“Ah, I see...” Aisha tilted her head so that Lyra could meet her gaze. “Lyra, if I ever made you uncomfortable-”

“Oh no, it-it’s not you!” Lyra immediately reassured, shaking her head. “It’s my fault...”

She sighed, swallowing.

“I mean... you’ve been back only a handful of months and you’re already doing so much! For your family, Vesuvia...  _me_... I,” she coughed, rubbing her neck, eyes watering.

“I don’t even know if, if my own mom is alive... and-and I look up to you so much, Aisha! You’re a wonderful human being, you’re kind and you got this mischievousness that makes everyone laugh, you’re-you’re-”

Lyra babbles like a creek, going on and on. Never once does Aisha stop her. She listens to Lyra, nodding every so often to reassure Lyra she wasn’t losing her attention.

After a while, the young woman stops, exhaling deeply.

“I guess I... heh,” she shakes her head again, wiping away a few tears. A brisk exhale escapes her. Lyra swallows again, closing her eyes.

“It’s, it’s gonna sound weird.”

“Oh, I don’t know about that,” Aisha chuckles. She gently places a hand on Lyra’s shoulder. “I’ve certainly heard stranger things in my time, but please, go on.”

At the reassurance, Lyra bites her lower lip, worrying it between her teeth.

“...I just, I don’t know how to act in these sort of situations, or if I’m even acting correctly, you know? I don’t have any memories of my family... much less of my mom...

“I... sometimes... sometimes I wonder if she’d like how I turned out...”

Lyra stares at her hands, lips a thin line.

Would her own mother recognize her now, with the Fool’s body as the container for her soul, and half of Asra’s heart?

“May I give you a hug, Lyra?”

Lyra starts at the question, looking at Aisha as if she suddenly had said it was snowing in Vesuvia.

“Uh, yeah! You can!”

Lyra bit her lower lip again, shaking her head in disbelief at herself.

“Careful; you keep doing that anymore and you’ll lose your head.”

The absolute image of her own head just popping off from her shoulders was enough to make Lyra laugh. She leaned into Aisha, carefully enveloped in the woman’s arms.

She smelled of tea, gentle soaps, and a little bit of paint. It was soothing...

Aisha gently rubbed the palm of her hand over Lyra’s back, her chin settled on top of her head.

“You know what I think?“

“...how do you mean?” Lyra replied, confused.

A gentle laugh bubbled from Aisha’s lips. “About your question earlier. I think your mother would be proud of you. I know _I_ am, and Salim, and Nadia....”

Aisha went on and on, her words helping to lift the anxieties Lyra shouldered. Soon, Lyra was hugging Aisha back in earnest, her face hidden against the latter’s dress.

“Do you feel better?” Aisha prompted, leaning back so Lyra could sit up straighter.

“Yeah, I do...” Lyra smiled at her, a dry laugh escaping her.

“I think I worry too much...”

Aisha chuckled. “Perhaps, but it comes from a place of love; you didn’t want to disappoint by coming to the dinner empty handed. From the sounds of it, was the cake semi-last minute?”

“More like _very_ last minute; that was why we were late...” Lyra explained, sheepish. “Sorry about that.”

“It’s all right,” Aisha soothed, giving her a pat on he shoulder. “I say it came out delicious.”

“I’m surprised Asra didn’t ruin his dinner, eating so much of the frosting,” Lyra snickered. “I had to make another batch because he did-!”

 _“Pfffthahah!_ Ohh, my dear child...”

They stayed outside a while, talking about whatever passed through their minds. Lyra was no longer tense and anxious. She looked glad to be in Aisha’s presence...

From a window, Asra watched them, a dimpled smile on his face at the sight.

It was okay.... everything was okay...

He couldn’t be more thankful for this, for everything turning out all right.

It was the best thing any one of them could’ve hoped for.


End file.
